


and they say murder can't be a bonding activity

by Metatron



Series: Among You [3]
Category: Among Us (Video Game)
Genre: Aliens, Bean can have a little murder. as a treat, Blood and Gore, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Worldbuilding, added some extra colors to the mix for fun, bean learns a new word! spoiler: it's 'fuck', just a space dad and his adopted jellybean baby, stop cursing in front of the child Orange, the backstory and lore filled sequel you may or may not have asked for, unethical science practices
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:06:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26927056
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Metatron/pseuds/Metatron
Summary: The universe can be pretty big and scary, especially if you’re an 8-inch tall alien jellybean baby. Thankfully this one has a newly Imposter-ed Orange to take care of him. But when you’re on the run from a space organization devoted to rooting out Imposters and killing them while at the same time fighting to survive in the unyielding void, is that enough?(Continuing the story of Orange and Bean from 'like son, like father'!)
Relationships: Orange & Mini Crewmate (Among Us)
Series: Among You [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1942543
Comments: 79
Kudos: 463





	1. Lost in the Void

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there, and welcome to the second installment in the story of Orange and Bean! If you haven't read the previous fic 'like son, like father,' I recommend you go check that one out first as this picks up right after that one ends!  
> Right now this is slated as 6 chapters, but that may increase as more gets written!  
> Thank you all for reading and now, on to the further adventures of space dad Orange and his baby Bean!
> 
> (Also, short clarifying Disclaimer-- only Bean and the Minis are jellybean people. The rest of the characters are regular humanoids, just in case that was a question people were wondering about.) :)

If there was one thing Orange could tell you, without a doubt in his mind, it was that space was big. I mean yeah, _obviously space was big,_ but there’s a difference between knowing that there’s a vast, unending void of death out there and quite another to actually _experience_ said void of death.

Being on a MIRA space crew meant that at the very least you had to be somewhat marginally okay with floating out in a ship billions of miles from any planet or any other living being. But as Orange was finding out, there was a big, big difference between having to confront the dark, death-filled vacuum of space from the relative safety of a ship where as long as you didn’t look out the windows too often and stayed near the most interior parts of your cruiser you might convince yourself you _weren’t_ in space….and being in a tiny dropship consisting of a single room surrounded by bay windows with the dead body of a guy you killed and your semi-human adopted alien baby who had turned you into a monster with a hunger for human flesh.

Okay, so maybe it was those last two things that were weirding Orange out more than the threat of imminent death.

But it was fine. Orange was doing _fine,_ thank you very much. He was _not_ freaking out about having ripped Lime to pieces (even though, given, the guy had really kind of deserved it). He was _not_ freaking out about the fact that the Lillipu-Tian Corp Mini crewmate his former colleague (former, because she had been ejected into space. It happens. Occupational hazard.) White had owned was apparently somehow an Imposter, which he had no idea was a thing that could happen. And he _definitely_ wasn’t freaking out because said Mini had bitten him causing him to transform into an Imposter, complete with tentacles and fangs and a _very intense_ set of new instincts and emotions.

No, Orange was definitely fine. Totally.

To be honest, aside from his _(complete and total_ ) fine-ness he was more just…lost. In less than a week, everything he’d known about himself had changed, and he didn’t exactly know…how to process it.

Five days ago, his life had been perfectly normal, except for being a crewmember on the MIRA space research freighter Reliant, a job he’d had to take because in this economy, there wasn’t much else. Orange hadn’t really wanted to go to space, but the debts were mounting and MIRA was hiring people with technical expertise, so on to the crew of the Reliant he went. He didn’t love his job, but work was work.

Four days ago, his crewmate Blue had been murdered by White, in full sight of the Reliant’s cams, and White was ejected from the airlock on account of being an Imposter, leaving behind her Mini. Orange hadn’t planned to take care of the thing....it had just looked so sad and alone. That’s when “it” became “Bean” and Orange became Bean’s caretaker.

Three days ago, Bean had bitten him, causing Orange to contract a virus transforming him into one of the tentacled space monsters notorious for killing MIRA crews and eating them. Orange had been overwhelmed by the surge of emotions he felt on changing for the first time—the Hunger he felt, the desperate desire to _eat and bite and hunt and kill._ But more importantly he’d been taken aback at how it had changed the way he felt about Bean—it was no longer just “looking after” the Mini. No, Orange’s new instincts had told him that _this was his child, they shared the same flesh and all that mattered was his baby—feeding him, loving him, killing anyone who dared threaten the both of them._ It was strange and new to Orange, and although he wouldn’t take it back, the deepening of his bond with Bean did…unsettle him. The depth of the things he felt as an Imposter…there was no human comparison.

That same day, mere hours after his transformation, Orange and his other crewmates were forced to bear witness to a threat that was all too human in nature, but still horrifying—their crewmate Lime, driven mad with paranoia, threw his friend Yellow out the airlock and then attempted to do the same with the rest of the crew. He’d tried to hurt Bean, and Orange’s new instincts drove him to kill Lime. But Lime had been an asshole, even without the paranoia. So Orange didn’t _exactly_ feel bad. Mostly.

Orange had thought his other crewmates would kill him after seeing what he’d become. But they’d let him live—on the stipulation that Orange take Bean in the dropship and go. The both of them were too dangerous to keep on board.

Two days ago, Orange and Bean had left the Reliant behind. Orange charted a course for as far away as they could go, not really caring where they ended up.

One day ago, Orange had realized how fucked they were.

It might have seemed like a mercy on the part of his former crewmates, but Orange had to face the reality—he and Bean were stuck in a tiny shuttle meant for short-distance transport and not for extended spaceflight. They had only a very limited supply of water, food, and air—not to mention limited _fuel._

Orange had used his expertise and hacked the dropship’s systems a bit, to try to up their odds. He put them on a low-burn fuel consumption burn that would maybe save some energy, and he’d lowered the Oxygen levels in the shuttle as low as he felt comfortable making them. That was actually a surprise on Orange’s part—he’d only planned on lowering the O2 levels slightly, just to give them a _bit_ more later on, but he soon discovered that he could lower them a whole lot more. Even after lowering the O2 being pumped through the shuttle by _half,_ Orange could barely notice a difference. _So, Imposters don’t need as much air,_ he had remarked. _That’s good to know._

He would lower the levels further, but he still had Bean to worry about and he didn’t want to put him at risk by going _too_ low.

Speaking of Bean, Orange felt a small set of stubby arms tugging on his sleeve.

“Maa?” asked a small voice.

Orange looked down and saw a sight that would have made his heart melt even _without_ the Imposter parent instincts running through his veins.

Bean stood beside him on the crate where Orange had sat down to have his Sad Melancholy Reflection Time. He had a miniscule, chubby, vaguely-humanoid white body styled to look like a space suit, complete with a tiny “visor,” which he was looking up at Orange through. Bean looked up at him so earnestly, squeaking in joy when Orange reached down to pick him up and cuddle him.

“Hi Bean! Hi!” Orange laughed, nuzzling his face against the Mini. “What’s up, little guy? What can Mama do for you?”

“Maaaaa!” Bean squealed, kicking his legs and giggling.

Orange gave him a gentle squeeze and set Bean down on his knee. “What do you need, buddy?”

Bean turned his diminutive body towards an item wrapped in plastic over in the corner. “Maa.”

 _Ah. He’s hungry,_ thought Orange. Speaking of which, Orange was feeling a little hungry himself—the capital “H” Hunger rearing in his chest and making Orange’s mouth partially shift into his Imposter form, long barbed tongue slipping out of his mouth to taste the air like a snake.

“Okay bud, let’s get you some food,” said Orange, setting Bean down on the floor and allowing him to run over while Orange got up and stretched, cracking his back. Then he walked over and carefully unpackaged the item in the corner, feeling his mouth water in anticipation.

Lime’s body had been wrapped up and given to him when he and Bean had left the Reliant. The crew had thought that was for the best, and they had known Orange and Bean would need food. Protein blocks and meal packets were fine, but they all knew that none of that would truly sate the Hunger forever.

Orange tried to not think about it as he let the Hunger take over and shifted, deadly teeth digging into the flesh. Despite how irresistibly delicious it felt to his Imposter tongue, he couldn’t shake the fact from his mind that this was once a _human being_ , someone who he’d known and talked to. Orange knew his instincts wouldn’t let him resist and he needed to eat, but he still wasn’t completely on board with this whole thing yet. It still felt _wrong._

After a moment, Orange had to rip himself away from the body.

_I can’t eat it all. We need to save some for later, and it’s more important that Bean eat than I do._

Bean, thankfully, had a pretty tiny stomach. He could still eat a fair amount, but by the time he was satisfied there was still a good amount left for later. Orange wrapped the body up again once Bean signaled he was finished by chirping and climbing up Orange in order to sit on his shoulder.

“Maaa,” he said, flicking his little Imposter tongue all over the side of Orange’s face as kisses. He was always extra affectionate after he’d just been fed, Orange had noticed. He felt his instincts rising up in turn, pleased that he was able to provide for his baby and that he was happy. He flicked a kiss at Bean in response, which made the Mini squeak in joy.

 _My baby. I love my baby,_ Orange’s heart sung.

Orange picked Bean up and placed him on top of his head, a spot the Mini seemed to like a lot, as he walked over to check the dropship’s systems. For the past day and a half he’d been trying to catch a reading on _anywhere_ in the vicinity that they might be able to go. Although Orange had hacked the shuttle’s systems to give them a better chance, he estimated with their current low-burn fuel consumption and reserves of O2 and food, they only had about a week before they were dead in the water, or more like “dead in the void” so to speak.

At this point, Orange didn’t care where they went as long as they found somewhere. A planet or moon with some level of habitability and no MIRA in sight was preferable, but if they had to make contact with a MIRA base or ship…well, Orange would cross that bridge if they came to it. All that mattered was that they find somewhere, and soon.

The problem was that, since the dropship was designed for short-range trips, Orange had had to do a lot of modifications to the radar to show a bigger area, but the system was buggy. For all Orange knew they could have passed within a couple clicks of somewhere they could stay and didn’t even know it because the radar hadn’t picked it up. So it was really guess and pray scenario at this point.

Orange sighed, finishing his check. _Still nothing._ He felt Bean wiggling on top of his head and reached up to give him a pat.

“We’ll figure it out, buddy. I promise,” he said. “How about a nap for now, though?”

There was a box on top of one of the crates that Orange had been using as a bed for Bean, but he noticed that the Mini only used it when Orange himself wasn’t trying to sleep. If that was the case, Bean always curled up right in the crook of Orange’s neck, rolling himself into a cute little ball.

It was pretty adorable, Orange had to admit, but right now he wanted to do an inventory of their remaining supplies while Bean napped instead of taking a rest himself. Orange reached up and plucked him of the top of his head, causing Bean to protest by squeaking and wriggling in Orange’s grip.

“You just ate a lot, so I know you’re probably gonna be sleepy soon,” said Orange to him, wrapping Bean into a little burrito with a blanket and placing him in the box. “I’m gonna be right here. You don’t have to worry. Just have sweet dreams, okay?”

“M..maa,” Bean protested again, but it was clear that he was growing tired from his voice.

Orange smiled and gave him a kiss on his forehead. “Night-night, Bean.”

“Nna-Nna,” Bean peeped back sleepily, clearly trying to repeat Orange.

Waiting until Bean was snoring softly, Orange got up and went to examine their supplies.

Orange made a note of how much water and O2 they’d used today— _both were good for now._ So was fuel. Given, he’d checked those three things pretty much every hour that he wasn’t asleep. As far as food…the… _meat_ would still last a while, but only if they started alternating with meal packets and protein blocks. Orange knew it wouldn’t be easy to convince Bean to eat something else while there was still the more desirable food choice on board, but when he’d given Bean protein blocks before the Mini hadn’t seemed to mind them too much, so there was hope.

Speaking of the protein blocks, Orange hadn’t counted how many the Reliant had spared for them when they left. He knew his former crewmates had given them some, but he hadn’t checked how many. Orange walked over to the crate opposite the one Bean was sleeping on and cracked it open, examining the contents. There were a few extra changes of clothes and an extra space suit in there, as well as some scrap parts for repairing the dropship. Orange rummaged around and had just spotted the box of meal packets when his eye caught something else—a note taped to a MIRA crewmate tablet, tucked in the corner.

Curious, Orange set the meal packets to the side and picked out the tablet, examining the note, which was handwritten.

_Orange-_

_I’m sorry once again for the way this turned out. None of us suspected Lime would try to do what he did. I know these supplies aren’t much, but it’s all we can spare. I’m including this tablet for another reason. This was White’s—Grey and I found it when we went through her belongings after the Incident. It’s encoded by a password and we didn’t have the time to crack it, but if anyone can break in, you can._

_I don’t know what you’ll find on it. Maybe nothing. But if White truly was an Imposter, like you, then perhaps this tablet holds information that you’ll find useful. Maybe it will even explain how her Mini came to be an Imposter. I’m not sure. But I think whatever White knew is of much more use to you at the moment than it is to MIRA, so I’m giving it to you._

_Godspeed, Orange. I’m sorry to lose you as a member of my crew, but know we are all in debt for what you did for us._

_-Green_

Silently thanking his former Captain for the gift, Orange peeled off the note and powered the device on. It was a miracle that Green had given this to him—as a MIRA captain, he was contractually obligated to turn over to HQ any information which might help in the war against the Imposter threat. After doing this _and_ letting Bean and him go, Orange was starting to think he probably should have gotten to know his Captain better. Because clearly there was more to they guy than just the tough military-esque front he put on.

White’s tablet came to life, screen lighting up with a password entry screen. _Damn,_ Orange thought, realizing he didn’t actually know that much about White when she had been alive.

He knew she had Bean of course, and that she’d been a researcher in some MIRA lab somewhere before being transferred to their crew, but other than that…

_Think, Orange, Think. What would you have as a password?_

“Hmm,” Orange said to himself, as his first three password suggestions _(‘fuck,’ ‘shit,’ and ‘password,’ respectively)_ failed to open the device. His gaze drifted over to Bean, who was still asleep in his blanket.

Bean’s name would be the obvious solution. But, when White had had him, his name had been something else. Desperately, Orange tried to wrack his brain to remember _any_ scenario when White had addressed her Mini, coming up with nothing.

_Damn it._

Then a thought occurred to Orange. _It couldn’t really be THAT simple, could it?_ He asked himself.

Carefully, he tapped out the word IMPOSTER on the keyboard and hit enter.

The device’s screen flashed, and then displayed a message.

_[WELCOME---VIEW LAST DATA LOG?]_

After a moment of hesitation, Orange tapped [YES], and began to read.

{LOG 67—STARDATE 17-10-2678.}

_{My name is Rachel Zaera, Designation White, MIRA Space Research Vessel Reliant. Formerly designation White 4, MIRA Research Base Kyalyeria.}_

_{The first thing you should know is…I am not an Imposter.}_


	2. What White Knew, Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there! Thanks for waiting for this next update. I've been out of town for the past week with very little internet access, so that's why new chapters have been delayed! I'm back home now, so you can expect regular updates once again!

{LOG 67—STARDATE 17-10-2678}

_{My name is Rachel Zaera, Designation White, MIRA Space Research Vessel Reliant. Formerly designation White 4, MIRA Research Base Kyalyeria.}_

_{The first thing you should know is…I am not an Imposter. I know based on what I’ve done it may look that way, and there is no excuse for the actions I have committed. But I’m recording this last log, in the case that my crewmates eject me into space, in the hopes that someone will one day read this and understand. I just want…someone to hear me out. MIRA will undoubtedly denounce me as a monster, and that’s fair—I am. But I would say I am a monster mostly because of what MIRA urged me to do. They are the real monsters. The Imposter threat would have never been a problem if they hadn’t done what they did._

_But I’m getting off topic. I don’t know if my crewmates will ever read this, but if they do…I’m sorry. Purple, I’m especially sorry for what I have put you through. No one deserves to have a loved one taken away from them like this. It was an accident. Blue had taken off her gloves, just for a moment, but that was enough. My Mini…MZ-729…the temptation was too much for it. It bit her. And I know what happens after that. She had hours before the change would have overtaken her, and our research has shown that an Imposter’s Hunger is strongest at that point. I told her what was happening, and she wanted to talk with the crew, but I felt they wouldn’t do what needed to be done. An adult Imposter is much more dangerous than a Mini. The crew wouldn’t have killed her, and then she would have killed us all without even knowing what she was doing._

_That doesn’t mean I feel good about what I did._

_MZ-729…it didn’t have a choice. It’s instincts demand that it find a parent figure and infect them as a defense mechanism. But as long as it’s fed, with pretty much anything-- they prefer human flesh, but will eat whatever they are given—they aren’t inherently dangerous, given you don’t tempt it with open skin. The Minis infected with this Imposter virus…they aren’t the enemies. They’re victims in all this. So all I ask, whatever happens to me, is that MZ-729 is allowed to live. It didn’t ask to be created._

_Just look after it once I’m gone. That’s all I ask._

_White, Reliant; signing off.}_

{END LOG 67}

Orange stared at the tablet in shock, hardly believing the words he was reading. White had never been an Imposter? Bean had bitten Blue? And how the hell had White come by Bean—MZ-729, as she called him—anyways?

He exited the log and navigated the best he could back to the tablet’s main menu, impatiently trying to see what else the tablet held.

_If nothing else, can I at least find the other 67 logs?_

Orange found a folder titled [LOG HISTORY] and clicked on it. There, neatly labelled, were White’s other entries, going back over a year. He scrolled through the list and saw that some of the files were showing up as [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED], which sucked, but the rest looked intact.

 _I have to know more,_ thought Orange. _Who the hell was White? Because clearly, I didn’t know her as well as I should have._

Eagerly flipping open the first log, Orange began to read.

{LOG 1—STARDATE 14-03-2677}

_{So. Uh. Hi. I’m kind of new at this, and HQ recommends that all crewmates keep a personal log, so that’s what I’m going to try to do._

_My name is Rachel Zaera, and I’m from the colony world of Taurus, raised in Giseppie Falls…uh, what else? Oh right, I just completed my 4-year bioresearch training at the MIRA Academy for the Sciences on Earth. That was a pretty big deal—I’m one of the only people from my colony who was able to go offworld for school, and it’s a pretty big honor to be accepted to MIRAAS in general—a lot of people just go to their local training schools before entering MIRA, but I scored well on the entrance exams and both my parents were MIRA scientists, before they died. Grandmam says that I probably got in because MIRA’s trying to accept more non-Earth applicants as a diversity thing, and she’s probably right, but I still would like to think I got in at least a little bit on merit._

_Anyways, I studied bioresearch, which in theory was supposed to be super cool—genetic engineering and alien biology and all that awesome stuff. In reality it was a lot more boring, but I’m hoping that now that I have my assignment on a MIRA base I might get to actually start doing some of the cool stuff._

_I was assigned to Kyalyeria Outpost—which, given, isn’t the most exciting assignment. All they do there is basic experiments on growing crops in space, which is kind of like a been-there-done that thing, but you have to start small I guess. But who knows, maybe there will be some fun to be found._

_When we join MIRA, each of us are allowed to pick a color—that’s a special thing just for Academy graduates. Most MIRA recruits are just assigned one. The color system is because MIRA feels identifying crewmates by color and ship is more efficient than by name, which I can understand. I chose the color White, because it reminds me of hope. I guess if I’m going to have to use a color as my name from now on, it might as well be a positive one._

_Because Kyalyeria is such a large outpost, I’m given a number as well. I’m White 4. It will be kind of weird to get used to, being called only a number and a color, but I’m sure it’ll become natural after a while!_

_Anyways, my dropship is approaching Kyalyeria 3, so I’ll update this again once I’m all settled in!_

_So, uh, White 4, Kyalyeria signing off!}_

{END LOG 1}

{LOG 2—STARDATE 15-03-2677}

_{Hello again! I mean—White 4, Kyalyeria, signing on._

_Wow! It’s been a crazy day. All the other new arrivals to the outpost and I arrived via dropship and were shown to our quarters, and then were taken for a tour of the facility. I knew it was big looking at the maps and mission briefings, but seeing it? It’s bigger than I could have imagined!_

_It’s amazing to think that people travelled all the way across the galaxy and managed to set up outposts like these hundreds of years ago when it would take years if not decades to make a single one-way trip. Kyalyeria outpost has existed in some form for centuries, although it certainly wasn’t as big back then as it is today!_

_We aren’t shown to our specific assignments until tomorrow. They want to give us a chance to settle in a little after our journey before putting us to work. Because my area is bioresearch, I assume I’ll be working in one of the greenhouse labs, where they’re developing new strains of plants that are better suited for growing in space and low gravity environments. At the very least it’s a little more exciting than the work I had to do in my last year at the Academy._

_I’m going to go to bed, but I’ll update you tomorrow!_

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 2}

{LOG 3—STARDATE 16-03-2677}

_{Oh my god. Holy crap. I don’t even know where to start with this entry. But, uh, White 4 signing on, I guess._

_I’m told all my logs are confidential, so I’m free to say whatever I want here, which is good because this is all HIGHLY CLASSIFIED! I can’t even believe I get to say that!!_

_IT’S ALL A FRONT. That’s right—all the agriculture stuff that Kyalyeria is doing on the surface of this big, giant base? IT’S ALL A COVER-UP!! And most of the people working here don’t even know!!_

_Let me back up a second. I got my work assignment today. Remember how I said I thought I’d be in the greenhouse labs? Well I guess that MIRAAS education_ does _actually mean something, because I’ve been assigned to a top-secret research team working in the advanced labs located beneath the base!_

_We were all in the cafeteria and they were passing out the work assignments. One by one, they assigned everyone a job and a guide to escort them, all except for me. At first I thought I had done something seriously wrong, because everyone had been assigned and it was just me and Olive, the Base Administrator. She led me to a store room tucked away in the far end of the base, much to my confusion, but then she showed me a lever that slid the store shelves back and revealed an elevator down to the lower levels! She took me down and introduced me to the team I’m going to be working with. I only met them briefly, but they all seem really smart and nice!_

_Officially, I’ve been assigned as a “Storeroom Keeper,” but that’s just a cover job to keep up appearances for the rest of the base. I haven’t been told what the research in the secret labs is about yet, but I can only assume it has something to do with bioresearch._

_I just…I’m just so excited I feel like I’m going to burst! It’s all so clandestine and covert, having a secret base underneath a base! That can only mean that the work I’m going to be doing is really important and might actually have an effect on MIRA as a whole! I wish I could write back to Grandmam and tell her all about this, but it_ is _supposed to be secret, so this log will have to do for now._

_Can’t wait to update again! White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 3}

{LOG 4—STARDATE 18-03-2677}

_{White 4, Kyalyeria signing on._

_I now understand why the research we’re doing is so top-secret—it’s about the Imposters!_

_MIRA doesn’t want these space monsters that started showing up after the Orous incident knowing that we’re trying to figure out who and what they are, hence all the secrecy. All the researchers on this team—this is their first space appointment. They do this so that they can be mostly sure that none of us are Imposters that have taken the form of someone else on another assignment._

_My new team seems nice—there’s only a few of us. Yellow 6, Red 2, Brown 7, Black 5, Violet 1, and Green 2. The labs we have to work in are huge, but MIRA wants to keep the human aspect of this operation as small as possible. The others have already been out here a while and have made huge strides into MIRA’s understanding of Imposters, but MIRA assigned me here because they’re hoping some new eyes will help advance the project._

_You see, the team has hit a roadblock—without any live Imposters to work with, it’s hard to study their biology. The only live Imposters in MIRA’s possession belong to an elite research team at HQ, but something exciting was transported in secret on the ship I came on—some Imposter DNA! There’s only a few vials of cells and bodily fluids, all that HQ could spare. They still don’t know how Imposters replicate, so they didn’t want to transport any more of their DNA than they have to._

_Our task is to try to figure out from this DNA how Imposters are able to replicate, and anything else we can. Even though they house the live Imposters at HQ, they can’t do close contact research there, due to the location, and so far they’ve been unable to find a way to transport them safely. It’s a miracle they were even able to be transported to HQ, and they don’t want to risk transporting them again._

_There’s a grim practicality in sending this biological research assignment to Kyalyeria—if something goes wrong, the base can be quarantined. They can’t do that at MIRA HQ. So we’re really on the forefront of this research that could help us understand these creatures and turn the tide of this war._

_It’s all so exciting, and I can’t wait to get started!_

_White 4, signing off.}_

{END LOG 4}

{LOG 5—STARDATE 20-03-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 6—STARDATE 25-03-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 7—STARDATE 30-03-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

[SKIP TO NEXT UNCORRUPTED FILE?]

…[YES]

{LOG 19—STARDATE 01-05-2677}

_{Hey there. White 4, Kyalyeria, signing on._

_Ugh. I just can’t get this DNA to replicate and it’s driving me crazy! We’ve mapped all the Imposter chromosomes and analyzed which are different from the average human, but we can’t get the Imposter cells to undergo mitosis in a lab setting. It’s just being…very stubborn._

_It’s also very much hurting our hypothesis that Imposters are a species that replicates the same way we do—through sexual reproduction. We can’t get cells to replicate under a microscope, and we certainly can’t get Imposter sperm (and yes, HQ sent us that, I fear to imagine how they had to collect that) to fertilize an egg, human or otherwise._

_We also aren’t finding anything to indicate they reproduce asexually, so we’re kind of stumped. Imposters keep showing up in different places all over the galaxy, and for the life of us we’re not sure how they’re doing it._

_There is one hypothesis circulating in the back of my mind though, and I don’t like it one bit. From the DNA we’ve analyzed, the order of Imposter chromosomes is remarkably,_ concerningly, _similar to a human’s. Now there are differences, obviously, and it might just be because Imposters were replicating human form when the samples were collected, but…I’m starting to wonder if maybe Imposters AREN’T shapeshifters like the common theory holds. I don’t know. It’s just a…gut feeling, but I’m starting to wonder if they aren’t even aliens after all._

_Argg. That’s going to have to be the end of this log for now. I need a drink, and then to sleep for a solid six hours._

_Anyways. Signing off.}_

{END LOG 19}

{LOG 20—STARDATE 03-05-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 21—STARDATE 10-05-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

[SKIP TO NEXT UNCORRUPTED FILE?]

….[YES]

{LOG 28—STARDATE 15-06-2677}

_{Finally! Success! It’s taken us months, but a cell taken from the mouth of an Imposter—a fricken CHEEK SWAB—has given us our first real breakthrough in months!_

_It was when we were examining this cell cluster, pretty much at the end of our rope, that we found something. The cheek cells contained a catalyst protein and cell structure that we didn’t find in any of the other cells in our collection—we didn’t find it until now because we really didn’t expect anything to come of the cheek swab. We assumed some of the more substantial samples like our bone, blood, and organ cells would give us more, not just something taken in the most banal, ordinary way._

_Perhaps we really should have started with the mouth first. It is one of the areas that undergoes the most change when an Imposter shifts into their inhuman form. But this catalyst seems to be unique to the mouth—it’s not found even in the other parts of the body that shift. Our research has shown that each mouth cell has organelles found nowhere else that produce and secrete this catalyst, but the catalyst has no effect on the cell itself._

_No, left alone these uniquely structured mouth cells and their catalyst seemed to be nothing special—it’s when we injected a non-Imposter, basic human stem cell with the extract of the catalyst that something remarkable happens. The catalyst seems to_ infect _the other cell, not unlike a virus attacking a healthy cell. And when the catalyst has permeated deep into the cell, it then…_ changes _it, turning it into an exact replica of a healthy Imposter cell in a matter of hours._

_This discovery is monumental because there is so much we can extrapolate from this. Most importantly, we finally have an answer, or at least a very solid consensus in our team, as to how Imposters replicate._

_They aren’t aliens. At least, they weren’t at first. No, I think we can put the pieces together and conclude that at one point, they were all like us. Normal. Human._

_Imposters are created by an afflicted individual infecting another with the catalyst secreted in their mouths, which in turn causes the infected to become an Imposter themselves. They aren’t shape shifters. This is a virus._

_It’s the only explanation that makes sense given the circumstances. Why people who never did a thing wrong in their life suddenly turn around and shift into these monsters—everyone thought that had to mean they had been “replaced” somehow, but it doesn’t—at some point they were just infected and changed. If Imposters can change another through a bite (which would pierce the skin, then allowing the catalyst to enter the bloodstream), it also explains why they seem to turn up everywhere. All an Imposter needs to do is bite someone and send them on their way, leaving behind the carnage._

_I don’t know which is worse—the idea that alien shapeshifters could replace people, or this alternative virus hypothesis which is looking more and more likely._

_It also brings up something else. We didn’t know how Imposters replicated before. We didn’t know it could be transmitted to humans. But the fact that we didn’t know…indicates that this infecting and changing of others isn’t random. It’s a deliberate, calculated act. They aren’t just going around changing anyone, and they seem to be able to keep from infecting someone unless they want to. It’s not just a random virus. It’s warfare._

_Nobody knows what the Imposters really want--besides eating people of course; that seems to be their primary food source. As to why, that requires further research. But I don’t know how much credence the theory that an alien shapeshifter replaced someone at Orous outpost and that’s how this whole thing started has anymore. It’s seeming more likely that somehow, one of the crewmates at Orous got exposed to some sort of alien virus and became the first Imposter._

_I don’t know. For every single thing we learn, the million things we don’t know just become more glaring._

_But I do know one thing—this isn’t how I thought I’d be spending my first MIRA assignment, that’s for sure. Maybe just working with the plants would have been much less stressful._

_Anyways. I have to go. Things to do._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 28}

{LOG 29—STARDATE 29-06-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

[SKIP TO NEXT UNCORRUPTED FILE?]

{LOG 36—STARDATE 10-09-2677}

_{Hiiiii, It’s Rach—I mean Whiiite, 8, no no no FOUR and I’m SUUUUPER DRUNK RIGHT NOW because Green Two found some of the SUUPER alcohol from the SUPER plants upstairs and we all had a good time togetherrrdfvv_

_My team, theyre not so baad. Theyre good people. Hate Imposters. An Imposter killed Brown’s sister and I told him haaaahha that’s funny because an Improsterer killed my parents too. Just ate em. Like a snac. And Browm said haha yeah that’s sad isn’t it. And I said yea it was I was like 7 and I cried alot. So we all hate imposters bjutt that’s good because I hate Imposters too and we’re gonna…science the FUCK out of those fuckers and then they’re all gonna be gone and we can all drink the supeer alcohol forever and ever and ever and fly spaceships and it will all be a good time,_

_There are so stupid, Imposters. Just blaarghh and tentacles and eat people with fangs. Cant b good for the digestion. I said that to Brown and he laughed and then we kissed or maybe I kissed himb or he kissed me I cant remember. Brown is very nice, I like him, grandma would NOT like him because she would say he’s too “homeworld” but what does that even mean??/ itsokay to be from earth. It’s a nice planet. I went to school ther_

_i’m going to go throw up in the trash chute now}_

{END LOG 36}

{LOG 37—STARDATE 11-08-2677}

_{I have the worst hangover of my entire life. Never drinking ANY alcohol EVER again. And I think I made out with Brown 7? WHOA.}_

{END LOG 37}

{LOG 38—STARDATE 13-08-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

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{LOG 44—STARDATE 13-9-2677}

_{Hey there. White 4, Kyalyeria, signing on._

_After several month of back and forth debate, we think we’ve finally found a way to study live Imposters in our lab safely. First, ‘live Imposter’ is a misnomer—these won’t be the kind of Imposters you find out attacking MIRA ships. No, basically, we’ll be making our own._

_As I mentioned in previous logs, we’ve tried using the Imposter catalyst to infect lab animals like the mice and chickens we have on hand to no luck. We even had some cows and pigs shipped in from another outpost, but no matter what animal we try, the catalyst just doesn’t seem to be able to work its magic._

_It seems the virus can only infect human cells. Which then poses a problem for us—the ethics and safety of trying to infect a human in a lab setting with this catalyst._

_First of all, MIRA is only able to contain live Imposters because they have advanced detention technologies at HQ designed to do so, and they never physically get close enough to their Imposters for anything to happen. That won’t work here for two reasons—one, we don’t have the capacity to build that kind of extensive facility without tipping off the people on the surface, and two, it just wouldn’t be worth the effort for the kind of research we need to do. How the hell would we be able to conduct the tests we need to without ever being able to go in the same room as our subjects?_

_And if we did have an Imposter and it managed to get lose, well—it wouldn’t be good for us or the rest of the outpost. It would certainly raise a lot of questions and compromise the secrecy we’ve cultivated here. This part of Kyalyeria would have to be abandoned._

_The second question is the ethics problem. If the catalyst performs as planned, then a subject WILL become an Imposter, and will be doomed to a life of being a monster and having an insatiable desire for human flesh. Ethically we can’t inflict that on a person._

_We thought about having MIRA ship in some of Lilipu-Tian Corp’s REPLIQUE human clones for a while, but we decided that since they are just as human as we are, just lab grown, it would raise the same issues of ethics and safety._

_Then, it hit us when Red 2 remembered Lilipu-Tian Corp’s other major product—the Mini. They’re partially fabricated out of human DNA, so hypothetically the Imposter catalyst would be able to affect them. But using them sidesteps both the safety and ethics issues, for the most part._

_They’re too small to actually do a lot of damage if infected, and they are easy to contain en masse. They also lack the human autonomy and intelligence that makes infecting an ethical issue—they’re designed to have intelligence about on par with a very young toddler, which makes it, in thought, no more unethical to infect them than a lab rat or pig._

_Their engineering to appeal to consumers also helps us a lot—minimal feeding, permanent small size, and no excrement? That’s a hell of a lot better than our lab mice and chickens, I’ll tell you._

_When we pitched the idea to MIRA we were a little afraid they would say no, since the market value of these Minis is pretty high. But thankfully MIRA HQ loved the idea and got in contact with Lilipu-Tian Corp immediately, who was more than happy to provide anything that might endear themselves to MIRA (LTC has been trying to get MIRA to buy more of their REPLIQUEs for space crews lately). They’ve put 200 (two hundred!!! Holy crap!!!) Mini embryos and all the other materials we need to hatch and grow them ourselves on the next freighter, all to be delivered under the guise of “agriculture supplies.”_

_We’ve also started adapting our labs to create space for all these Minis, as well as planning out our experiment roster. It’s a lot of work, but we only have a couple weeks before the ship arrives and we have to be ready to go._

_We’re fairly confident that these Minis will be a way for us to safely study the effects of the Imposter virus on live beings, which will then, hopefully, help us get one step closer to the cure and the ability to eradicate them once and for all. It’s exciting stuff, and I can’t believe I get to be a part of it all._

_White 4, Kyalyeria. Signing off}_

{END LOG 44}

[SKIP TO NEXT UNCORRUPTED FILE?]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> P.S. Check out this lovely fanart of Orange and Bean by @Likara_Flowers!!   
> https://twitter.com/LikaraFlowers/status/1316082530676805634?s=20


	3. What White Knew, Part II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Trigger warning for a bit of gore and unethical scientific practices. This whole research team is so fucked up, smh. And they don't always do logical or safe things. Also smh.)

{LOG 45—STARDATE 17-11-2677}

_{Whew!! White 4, Kyalyeria signing on! So much has happened since my last update! The shipment from Lilipu-Tian Corp arrived with the Mini embryos, and after about a month of gestation in the lab, the first ones are fully developed!_

_Our first batch contains 20 Minis—we decided to start with a small trial group at first, just to test the waters. Plans are right now to let them get comfortable with their surroundings in the enclosures we’ve built for them, get them used to eating the specialized Mini food that Lillipu-Tian has provided, and then infect 10 of them. They’ll then be injected with a small amount of Imposter catalyst and kept quarantined individually so we can see the response. We’ll do nothing to the other 10 as a control group, and also as a way to see if the experiment is being affected adversely at all by being underground on an alien planet. Better to account for anything—that was the first thing they taught at MIRAAS._

_Before now, I’d never actually seen a Mini in person before. I’d known they existed of course, but no one back home on Taurus was well off enough to be able to afford one, and at MIRAAS they keep you pretty isolated while you focus on your studies, and no pets are allowed. The only members of our team who have ever interacted with them before are Red 2 and Brown 7. Red’s parents got one after he and all his siblings left the nest, and Brown 7 said that his sister has THREE of them. THREE!! I knew his family was well off, but god….wow. To be able to afford three of these things…._

_Speaking of which, things are actually going really well between me and Brown 7! After our…drunken encounter earlier, we’ve been hanging out together more and I’ve found he’s actually really nice! He’s been really upfront about what his upbringing was like and although he loves his family, clearly he’s tried to distance himself from them. When I tentatively asked him about it, he said it’s because he knows that a lot of his family’s money and power comes from unethical (but still unfortunately legal) business practices—his family’s corp. was one of the first to start building spaceships, and was more concerned about pumping out ships fast rather than the safety or fair wages of employees and the ships in general. He said he would rather be distanced from his family and their money and pursue a career in research that he really cares about rather than take over as the heir to a company making ships to sell to MIRA for cheap._

_And on top of that, he’s also really funny! We share a lot of the same interests and I’m always looking forward to hanging out with him more. Kind of excited to see where this goes, not going to lie :)_

_Anyways. There isn’t much more to tell until the trials start, so until then, White 4, Kyalyeria signing off!}_

{END LOG 45}

{LOG 46- STARDATE 25-11-2677}

_{White 4, Kyalyeria signing on!_

_Wow! I’m really excited to give this update! It’s now been 24 hours since the first Minis were injected, and so far the results have been mindblowing! None of them have appeared to have adverse reactions, and the catalyst seems to be performing exactly as anticipated!_

_Yesterday, we individually injected the 10 Minis with the catalyst and then left them alone in separate small enclosures. We also put the control group Minis in enclosures by themselves. In each enclosure we had a small amount of water, the specific Lillipu-Tian Mini food, and raw meat available, in hopes of seeing which each group gravitated towards. The entirety of the control group only consumed the Mini food and water, but as expected the Imposter group was WILDLY more fascinating._

_For about the first 3-ish hours, nothing happened. The infected Minis played by themselves in their enclosures, slept, or ate the regular Mini food and water. Nothing strange happened and none of them even touched the raw meat (we repurposed our lab chickens). We were even beginning to be concerned that the entire experiment was going to be a bust, and we’d asked for all these resources that weren’t even going to pan out._

_But THEN. At around the fourth hour after being injected with a serum of the Imposter catalyst, the 10 Minis started to act differently. At first, the behaviors started with them beginning to make noises of distress and perhaps even pain, instead of the usual giggles and squeaking. Then we noticed them all without fail gravitate to the raw meat—and this is the cool part—with tiny IMPOSTER POINTED TEETH AND BARBED TONGUES visible in their mouths. They also seemed to be able to eat A LOT more—most of them swallowed the raw chicken pieces whole and then consumed the rest of their Mini food! We were all OVER THE MOON at this development, because it meant our hypothesis of the Minis having enough human DNA to be infected was correct!_

_Since then, the Imposter group has continued to display some behaviors not seen in the control group, although after this first exciting incidence most of the Minis have gone back to normal activities of playing, verbalizations, etc. We do however see them actually GROWLING occasionally—some of them will growl and then attack toys in their enclosures, wrapping their tongue around toys or ripping them apart with their teeth. They do also seem to be able to open their mouths wider than the average Mini, but that requires further testing._

_We’re still very early into this testing. We still don’t know whether Mini Imposters “shift” into their Imposter form like the adult version, and from the lack of tentacles we’ve seen we’re leaning towards the conclusion that they’re not able to manifest those. Another further test we plan to conduct once we’ve studied some of the Minis’ biology individually is how they will react with one another—will Mini Imposters attack and attempt to consume other Mini Imposters? What about the average Minis?_

_There’s so much to learn, and I’m so excited! We’ll do more tests tomorrow; for right now we’re just making sure to drop extra raw meat into the enclosures of the Imposter Minis every 4 hours or so, as that seems to keep them fed._

_Updating again soon! White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 46}

{LOG 47—STARDATE 01-12-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 48—STARDATE 16-12-2677} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 49—STARDATE 27-12-2677}

_{Whelp. White 4, Kyalyeria here. We’ve just finished our first experiment in putting together control group Minis and Imposter Minis and let’s just say it did NOT end well for the control group Minis. We actually only have 2 left, now._

_It wasn’t pretty, and to be honest…thinking about it kind of makes me feel…icky. It was an experiment we needed to run, but…_

_We’d finished all physical trials we wanted to conduct on the first batch of Minis. At first it was just height, weight, eating habits, behaviors stuff—pretty standard. It got more complicated from there. We had a lot of things we wanted to test with the Imposter Minis._

_First, we tested how much they could eat. This was interesting because it seemed like Imposter Minis were able to consume more than should have been physically possible for them. We took half of our group (we didn’t want to use all of them yet in case it proved fatal at this stage) and fed them raw meat constantly, prompting them with a physical shock if they stopped eating, all while monitoring vital signs like heart rate and breathing, as well as weight. They were able to consume 25 POUNDS of meat and increased their weight by a dozen ounces before we decided to end the trial as their heart rates were entering a dangerous level. Every bit of that is amazing! Like, where does the poundage of the meat consumed GO?? Is the vast majority of it instantly burned into calories and a small amount added to temporary body mass? Or something else? Regardless, an exciting thing that requires further testing once our next batch of Minis finishes gestating._

_We also tested how long they’re able to go without food. Current record is 48 hours—after that their bodies start to physically shut down. This is interesting, because a normal Mini can go almost a week and a half without food—a specifically designed feature beneficial to forgetful Mini owners who might overlook feeding them in the midst of their busy lives. This feature seems to be disregarded once Minis are infected with the Imposter catalyst._

_They also need less oxygen—we were able to remove nearly 85% of the O2 in their enclosures before the Minis seemed to become distressed and vital signs appeared dangerous._

_We were very interested to see what would happen when we introduced the Mini Imposters to one another by putting them in an enclosure together. At first we only put in 4 at a time, curious to see if they would attempt to attack or eat each other. A bit to our surprise, they didn’t do either, and simply began to play and interact with each other. At that point we felt comfortable putting all 10 of them in together._

_The results have been interesting. The Minis have not shown any indication of serious violent behavior towards one another in a group of only Imposters. They will play fight with one another, just like they do with toys—small growls, kicking, using their tongues, nibbling bites. But none of them actually ever draw blood or actually attack each other. They can become slightly more aggressive at mealtimes, hissing and growling at each other if one takes a piece of food another wanted, etc., but overall if there is plenty of food to go around, nothing will come of it._

_The way they play with each other is…kinda cute actually, and I’d never thought I’d say that about these weird little things. But they interact with each other much more than our other lab animals—they like to sleep in piles together, get great joy out of play fighting and chasing each other around the enclosure, and sometimes will just chirp and giggle at each other. They genuinely seem to enjoy the presence of others, instead of being hostile._

_We plan to see what happens when they’re left alone all together without food for a long period of time, but at the moment there was a more important experiment we wanted to run. We wanted to see what would happen if the Imposter Minis were introduced to the regular Minis._

_The result was…well. We suspected it wouldn’t go well, but wow. It was a bloodbath. Even after having been fed not long before, the Imposter Minis instantly began to attack the control group, one Imposter even consuming an entire control Mini WHOLE. The Imposters seemed to gang up on all the others, working together to tear apart or contain average Minis. Our remaining two control Minis only survived because we quarantined them off quickly (we DID want to keep some alive as these two would be the foundation of our study on the long term effects on being on Kyalyeria 3 for Minis)._

_I’ve heard some awful stuff in my life, but gosh. The sounds the control group Minis made while being ripped to shreds and eaten alive…I know they’re just lab animals for us to use, but I couldn’t help feel something in response to the sounds of genuine terror and agony those creatures were making. They reminded me of my parents. Of how they died._

_And I really thought I was strong enough to be able to conduct experiments like this, but the second it was over I had to go back to my quarters and have a good cry. It just reminded me of all the people who have died just like that, because of the Imposters. Brown 7 came into my room later to comfort me. I know he gets it. One of his sisters was killed by an Imposter too, and I know it can’t be good psychologically to still be traumatized by that and also know his other sister has 3 Minis and to now have the image of Minis ripping living creatures apart just like a full Imposter. I don’t envy him._

_I don’t know. I’ve just got a lot of emotions running through my head right now._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 49}

{LOG 50—STARDATE 03-01-2678}

_{Happy New Year! White 4, Kyalyeria signing on._

_First off, yes I’m one of those people who still says Happy New Year even though YES I know all the problems with it a la it’s an Earth-centric system, it’s not actually the best way to measure time on other planets or in space, etc. etc. I still like it because I like what it represents—a chance for new beginnings. Speaking of which, I do have a bit of exciting news about new beginnings, in that Brown 7 and I are dating now!_

_We were hanging out together all night at the small New Years Eve party we threw for the Lab Team, (even though as Violet 1 and Green 2 were quick to say, there’s not really a point in having one since there aren’t really “evenings” on Kyalyeria 3 and we’re so far from Earth it’s not like we can watch any of the festivities there or anything.) Still, it’s just fun. But as our official clocks reached midnight, Brown & and I kissed again! We later went back to my room to…have a good time, and we’ve both decided we’d like to date each other._

_We know that technically dating is frowned on among crews, as it can create uncomfortable dynamics between crews, even if everything goes well. I know, I know, I know. But…I guess that’s JUST how much I like him. I’m willing to go behind everyone’s backs and break the rules for him, and it’s a little exciting!_

_I’ll keep you posted. Regardless, our next batch of Minis should be ready within the week, so we can finally get started on stage two of experimentation!_

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 50}

{LOG 51—STARDATE 15-01-2678} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 52—STARDATE 26-01-2678} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

[SKIP TO NEXT UNCORRUPTED FILE?]

….[YES]

{LOG 55—STARDATE 05-03-2678}

_{I…hey. White 4, Kyalyeria signing on. I’m kind of…still struggling with understanding what is going on, so forgive me if I struggle to get it down on the page._

_Everything was going well. Excellent, in fact. We were well on to our third much larger group of 50 Minis, and had been making great strides in understanding their biology and behavior, and how that would translate to Imposter adults. The biggest accomplishment was through intensive conditioning, we have been able to get Mini Imposters to completely ignore regular Minis and a food source, and then have been studying what is triggered psychologically and physically in hopes that we may be able to find some way to prevent adult Imposters from seeing_ humans _as a food source. We even managed to genetically modify the Minis chemically to ignore each other as food once we learned what was being triggered by our conditioning, so now we don’t have to worry about that anymore. It will be difficult to figure out exactly how to do the same in adult Imposters though. Not without a live one. But that brings us to the next point._

_I want to talk about something else. From a research perspective, the opportunity we have is both very dangerous and very exciting. There’s a lot to be learned. But I can’t help but feel incredibly, overwhelmingly sad._

_We had no idea that what would happen was even possible. It was a complete accident, a bunch of unfortunate coincidences coming together at just the right time._

_This is what happened. While we usually let all the Minis live and play together in one large enclosure, we take them away from the group for individual testing. We isolated one particular Mini by netting it in the usual way and it was brought to an individual enclosure. The Mini seemed upset by this, as it did not want to be isolated from the group, but did not make other protests that might have indicated it was not a normal Mini._

_We have an excellent tagging system to keep track of who’s who and who’s an Imposter and who’s not in our test population. Each are assigned two letters and three numbers so we can differentiate. Yellow 6 was in charge of this whole ordeal as this was supposed to be a routine check up on a control Mini and is very standard, so it could be easily done alone._

_The only explanation that we could come up with is Yellow 6 saw the color and made an honest mistake, or that she was very tired and not really paying attention. The Mini she was supposed to be checking on was MS-452, a normal control group pink colored Mini. Instead she trapped MZ-215, a pink Imposter Mini._

_For regular Minis, we usually go in and physically check them out, as there is no harm and the physical contact seems to improve their mood. Yellow 6 did exactly as according to procedure, except she had a completely different Mini than anticipated._

_I know what you think I’m about to say. That she went in there and MZ-215 ripped her to shreds and killed her. The reality is…that couldn’t be further from what happened._

_Yellow 6 went in there to check the Mini’s height, weight, heart rate, etc. We don’t usually wear space suits since we’re in a research environment, so she wasn’t wearing one, especially for such and routine procedure. The Mini in question actually let her conduct the examination—Yellow 6 remarked that it seemed confused, which obviously we know now is because it never had an actual human handling it like that before. She said it seemed really happy by her just touching and petting it, and was more than contented the whole time._

_It was once she finished the examination that things took a turn. She went to leave, as standard, and the Mini began to become seriously upset, crying and clearly wanting her to come back. It’s usual for some Minis to protest when we leave them and send them back into their enclosures, but she had never seen a reaction like this before. When she went back to check on the Mini, it bit her on her arm._

_Obviously, she was quite shocked and left the exam room immediately, causing the Mini to become even more upset. Yellow 6 thought perhaps it was just the creature acting out and throwing a tantrum, so she made a note of it and then returned the Mini to the larger enclosure. At the time, she didn’t think anything of it._

_Cut to the rest of us turning up for our hours for the next shift. Yellow 6 and Violet 1 were the only ones on the “night” shift, and we show up to an absolutely BAFFLING sight. Violet 1 is crying and Yellow 6 is IN THE MINI ENCLOSURE, petting and cooing over all the Minis, who are fighting for her attention. She’s paying special attention to one Mini in particular—MZ-215, holding it and calling it “her baby” over and over again._

_There was a panic at first as to the incredible danger Yellow 6 was in, being with all those Imposter Minis who have NOT been trained to ignore human flesh. But to our shock she seems to be in no danger, and then we try to convince her on the intercom to get out of there. She becomes visibly angry and upset, claiming that we “are going to hurt her baby” and “are going to take her baby away from her,” which is very confusing as we don’t know exactly what she’s talking about. Eventually we understand that she’s referring to MZ-215, but that she also gets upset at the idea of being removed from ANY of the Minis._

_We have NO idea what the hell has come over Yellow 6, but we agree that it might be some sort of mental breakdown and the best thing to do is try to get her out of there and take her to the small medbay we have in the labs. But we also don’t know how to get her out of there. We decide the best thing would be for a couple of us to suit up in our heavy duty hazmat suits that we don’t think Mini Imposter fangs can pierce._

_Brown 7 and Black 5 go in through the ceiling airlock, but are NOT prepared for the reaction. Instead of more crying as we expected from Yellow 6, she, well…she full on shifts into a full Imposter form; teeth, tongue, tentacles and all. Brown 7 and Black 5 thankfully got out of there before she could do anything, but we were all in shock. We all know that none of us are Imposters. But somehow now Yellow 6 is one of them._

_Once she’d calmed down and we assured her over intercom we weren’t going to try to take her out again, Yellow 6 was willing to answer some of our questions. Reluctantly we were also able to convince her to move to one of the larger offshoot enclosures, as long as the door to the main one was kept open and she could take the tiny pink MZ-215. We put some supplies like human food and blankets in there for her, but she admitted she had eaten a lot of the Minis’ supply of raw meat and requested more for both herself and them._

_Our working hypothesis is that she was changed when the Mini bit her, and that it triggered strong parental feelings in her towards the specific Mini that bit her, but all of them (particularly the Imposter Minis) in general. She keeps repeating that MZ-215 is her child, no matter how we try to explain to her that that isn’t physically possible._

_Even while we questioned her, she actively played with the thing and refused to let it go, and the Mini in question seemed absolutely overjoyed at the attention._

_Later, the rest of us had a very tough conversation. We all like Yellow 6. She’s been part of this team since the beginning and we all think very highly of her. But all of us are on the fence on how to handle the situation._

_On one hand, this is evidence of a FASCINATING phenomenon—Imposter Minis being able to infect humans, which we didn’t think they would be capable of (we also didn’t think they’d have an opportunity to, and perhaps that’s hubris.) We’re also very interested in the way this seems to be some sort of new behavior, perhaps filling an evolutionary desire for a parent and protector we didn’t know Imposter Minis would have. We didn’t think Imposters had children, after all. So we’re very interested to know where this symbiotically infected parent-child dynamic comes from. We also now have the chance to study a real, adult Imposter whenever we want._

_And on the other hand, it’s very, very dangerous to keep a live Imposter down here and keep it a secret. We don’t have the facilities or resources to safely house or feed an adult Imposter. And MIRA standard Imposter policy is shoot on sight. But also…Yellow 6 is our friend. I personally have some reservations about using her as a test subject, because it just doesn’t feel right to me. But I don’t want to kill her either._

_We haven’t decided anything yet; I just wanted to get all of this out of my head while it’s still fresh. I’ll keep you updated as to what we do._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 55}

{LOG 56—STARDATE 07-03-2678}

_{White 4, Kyalyeria, signing on._

_After a ton of lengthy and intense deliberation, we’ve decided not to kill Yellow 6. We also decided not to tell MIRA HQ what happened. We know it’s dumb. We know. But we just can’t bring ourselves to do it, and we think the scientific gains here might be more important than our personal safety._

_We’ve done our best with the supplies we have to bolster our security, reinforcing the entrance to the underground labs (in case we need to go into lockdown) and the Mini enclosures. We’ve converted one of our medium-sized enclosures into a place where Yellow 6 can stay._

_Our reasoning for keep Yellow 6 alive is also because as long as we don’t try to separate the Mini from her and make sure she has enough raw meat, she seems totally…normal. She’s able to talk and answer questions without any difficulty and she’s been very open about her experience and these new emotions she’s feeling. The Imposter virus has had pretty much no impact on her mental functioning, and she’s eager to be able to interact on a more personal scale with the Imposter Minis, which none of us have been able to do before out of fear for safety._

_This parent-child bond she’s formed with Mini MZ-215 is of the upmost interest to us, as we really have no idea where it’s coming from, or how it has physically influenced both the Mini and Yellow 6._

_I said before that I didn’t really feel comfortable with using someone who I consider a friend as a lab rat, but Yellow 6 doesn’t seem to have any problems and has not been a threat to anyone’s safety beyond that first time we tried to take her out of the enclosure, so we’re moving forward at this point._

_Despite now being an Imposter, Yellow 6 seems to be…genuinely happy. If it were me who had just been doomed to a life like that, I would have been miserable. But Yellow 6 doesn’t seem to feel like that—instead she spends all day loving and doting on the Minis, who crawl all over her and babble for attention. Everyone in that enclosure, Imposter or otherwise, seems to really be happy._

_And I guess…I don’t know. All my life, I’ve always seen Imposters as monsters after everything they’ve taken from me and so many other people. I’ve hated them as long as I can remember. And I’ve never seen these Minis as anything more than just a means to an end. But the way Yellow 6 has embraced all this, and how the Minis seem to interact with her with genuine care and love…I don’t know. I feel uneasy._

_Anyways, we still have a lot of work to do around here, as always, so I have to go._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off}_

{END LOG 56}

{LOG 57—STARDATE 18-03-2678}

_{Hey. Well. It’s White 4._

_I actually have some good news to share! Along with the observation of Yellow 6 going well, there’s been an exciting development with Brown 7 and I—he asked me to marry him! He said he knows we haven’t known each other for very long, but he really enjoys every second he spends with me and he couldn’t imagine anyone else he’d like to study the universe with, and I said I felt exactly the same way._

_I’m just…I can’t even state how happy I am right now! It’s not going to be easy, we both know that. Married couples ARE allowed to be on crews together, because MIRA thinks it’s a bit more permanent that just dating and thus has less of a chance to mess up the operations of a crew. Neither his family nor my Grandmam is going to like our decision, but we don’t really care. The bigger issue is more that…we aren’t sure if we really want to be a married couple out here on Kyalyeria 3. We both are dedicated to our research and the importance of the work we do, but we’d also like to, I don’t know, get out there and explore the universe before settling down somewhere. We want to do all our venturing around the universe with MIRA before we maybe have kids one day._

_A lot of this comes from me, I know that. My parents were MIRA scientists and thus were never home and then eventually got killed out in space. If I had children, I wouldn’t want the same to happen to them. I wouldn’t want to leave them in a situation where they didn’t have anyone who really wanted to look after them, and Brown 7 agrees._

_(By the way, he finally told me his real name—it’s Alexander! That’s so weird to think about, I can’t picture him as anything other than “Brown 7” haha)_

_We’ve both decided that we’re going to request reassignment to one of MIRA’s research ships. Those travel all over the galaxy to different bases and outposts and even the colony worlds and Earth sometimes, so we’d get to see a lot of different places. We both know the importance of the research we’ve been doing here, but…being with each other and building a life we want is more important. MIRA is filled with so many brilliant scientists and I know they can find others who are passionate about this. The both of us are also more than qualified to be on a research ship, so there’s no reason why they should deny that request._

_I know…I know I should be more torn about this than I am. I love my job. But I love Brown 7—Alexander—more. And if we both decide we’re still really passionate about this research in the future, we could also request another reassignment. We just…we know that this relationship between us isn’t some fleeting thing. We’re both committed, and I have a feeling it’s going to last as long as we’re both alive._

_Anyways, White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off!_

{END LOG 57}

{LOG 58—STARDATE 05-04-2678}

_{White 4 here. Both Brown 7 and I announced our intentions to the team today, as well as submitted our transfer requests to MIRA._

_They were sad and said they’d wish we would stay, but I think they understand. Our relationship has been known unofficially among the team for a while now, and I think they understand why we want to leave. To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them are grateful, because they don’t want a marriage to mess up the research dynamics._

_Surprisingly the most upset was Yellow 6. Of course she’s still in the enclosure with the Minis out of safety, but we told her alone while the rest of the team was off working because we didn’t want to make her feel like she was the last person to be hearing this news._

_She actually got visibly upset, holding the pink MZ-215 close and asking if we were leaving because of what happened to her. We said no, of course not, we made this decision completely independently from all that. She still seemed convinced that our decision to leave was somehow due to her becoming an Imposter and not feeling safe, instead of because our goals and feelings for each other. Despite all our attempts to assure her otherwise, she got very angry and at the end actually refused to talk to us._

_Over the course of our conversation with her, Yellow 6 actually even begged us not to leave, saying she didn’t think it was a good idea and that Brown 7 specifically would regret it._

_I was highly confused, but later Brown 7 confided to me that he had suspected that Yellow 6 had a crush on him a while back and that she’d always been in denial about our relationship, due to how she’d continued to act around him the entire time they’d been crewmates. Unlike some of our other team members, who silently understood that we were dating and couldn’t say anything because of MIRA but let us have our space (“We’ve all been there,” said Violet 1 to me once, intentionally vague), Yellow 6 would always barge in when we’d be having a meal together alone or just hanging out and want to interact with us. I suspect that she might have known and was trying to sabotage us, but Brown 7 insists he doesn’t think it was intentional._

_And now there’s this whole thing where she’s convinced we’re leaving because she’s an Imposter. It’s so…god, it’s so self-centered! Of course we_ care _about her becoming an Imposter, but that’s for all the research reasons and because she’s our friend! But Brown 7 and I aren’t leaving because of her! And what the hell is she thinking? That somehow she and Brown 7 are going to get together?? That she’s going to steal him from me and they’re going to be together while she’s an Imposter? What the hell is she thinking? God, it just makes me mad._

_Regardless, hopefully MIRA will approve our transfers (we didn’t tell them why we ACTUALLY wanted to leave, because that would mean we had broken policy) and pick replacements quickly, so they can come and we can teach them about the sensitive research we’re doing before we leave._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 58}

{LOG 59—STARDATE 11-04-2678} [WARNING- FILE CORRUPTED]

{LOG 60—STARDATE 16-04-2678}

_{I…_

_I…I’m sorry. I’m…I’m just…this log is very hard for me to write. I want to write this because it’s the only way I know to try to understand what has happened. So forgive me if it doesn’t…if it’s not completely coherent._

_Everything was going so well. After some convincing, MIRA approved transfer requests for Brown 7 and I to another research ship. Plans were that a month from now, the both of us would board a freighter vessel—the MHWC Kargen (MHWC—MIRA Heavy Weight Cruiser) that was stopping by Kyalyeria outpost, and we’d hitch a ride to Asria, a colony world that’s a large MIRA hub. It would take two months to get there, at which point we’d join the newly assembled crew of the MSC Reliant. The old crew of that ship was being transferred to a larger cruiser, so they were looking for all new people._

_The scheduled mission length for the Reliant was 3 years, and it would travel to a ton of different outposts and planets. I think they were hesitant to assign both Brown 7 and I to the same ship because they didn’t want use two researchers in the same place, but then Brown 7 mentioned he had a little mechanical expertise and could also double with helping a ship’s systems, so they were willing to approve._

_They also chose two candidates to replace us, and they are scheduled to arrive next week._

_We were going to train the replacements, then take our lift to Asria and get married there—it would have been pretty easy, as it’s a colony world. Then we would have gone on our three year mission and figured out what we wanted to do together after that was over._

_All of that is off the table now._

_It was…well. I guess we underestimated how strong Yellow 6’s feelings for Brown 7 were, or maybe they were somehow boosted by Imposter emotions._

_This whole time, Yellow 6 has been mostly cordial, despite having to live in the Mini enclosure. She’s helped out with research from the inside where she can, including gathering Minis for us so we don’t have to net them when we take them away for individual experiments. Lately she’s been becoming more and more vocal about the “inhumanity” of the experiments we do, how it’s “abusive” to the Minis and even how she doesn’t think any of them (herself included) should be “enslaved and jailed.”_

_But even despite this, we still trusted her, perhaps out of a blind perception of her still being our friend and teammate. That was…that was the wrong call. Pretty obviously, in retrospect._

_Anyways, we were trusting her to gather individual Minis and put them in individual enclosures for experiments. After she became an Imposter, we made it so that nothing is able to be opened from the inside so there’s no way anything can get out of there._

_The way it happened was, and pardon my French, fucking stupid. It was the same damn way SHE had gotten infected, except this time it wasn’t an accident._

_Brown 7 had been assigned a standard examination for one of our control Minis, because we’ve been doing long term measurements on how being on Kyalyeria has affected them. We trusted Yellow 6 to get the Mini required and put it in the proper enclosure for examination. She purposely picked an Imposter Mini instead. She flat out SAID this was her plan later, with a note of glee._

_…god, FUCK HER. FUCK HER TO HELL._

_You can guess what happened. Yellow 6 said that she specifically chose this one for him, because she “thought he would be the perfect parent for it!” This sick bitch purposefully did all this so the SAME thing that happened to her would happen to him. She chose a Mini and took advantage of the evolutionary instincts the Imposter Minis are developing, knowing it would infect him the second he showed even the slightest bit of affection to it out of her desire to be with him. She thinks that since they’re both now Imposters, “he doesn’t have to leave and they can finally be together!”_

_The one of the terrible things was that ever since Yellow 6’s incident we haven’t been handling the Minis, even the normal ones, sans hazmat suits anymore. But she sabotaged the equipment, making it impossible for anyone to collect readings from outside the enclosure or wearing the heavy hazmat gloves that can’t handle the delicate parts of a damaged scanner well. She made sure that he would be the one on rotation for this exam, and that he would have to take off his glove to complete them exam in order to remain on schedule._

_I…I’ve only been to see him once since it happened. He was still in that enclosure, cuddling the brown Imposter Mini Yellow 6 had forced upon him._

_He cried when he saw me. Because we both knew that everything was ruined now. He was an Imposter and the whole team knew about it, and there was no way they were going to let him leave now. The future we planned together was never going to happen._

_I asked him if he still loved me, if he now loved that…._ thing _more than me, and he said he still loved me more than anything, but he didn’t have a choice in the way he felt about this Mini. He told me he knew it was irrational, how it wasn’t true, but how every cell in his body was telling him he had to protect it and that this Mini was his baby. When he said that, he began to shift into an Imposter out of emotion and I couldn’t take it anymore. I left._

_I’m feeling so many things right now. I feel angry, angrier than I’ve ever felt before, perhaps even angrier than I did at that Imposter who killed my parents. I think it’s worse because this is all the fault of Yellow 6, someone who all of us trusted, who I even considered a friend! She took the only person that I truly cared about from me, all out of some selfish plan to have him for herself. She said that now that they’re both Imposters, they can be together and raise their children. God, if there hadn’t been a glass barrier between us, I swear I would have slapped her._

_It has given me hope that apparently Brown 7 has refused to see her ever since this happened, and is as angry about it as I am._

_But I still can’t help but feel overwhelming sadness at the death of my future. Yes, Brown 7 is still alive. But now we can never be together. Our plans of marriage, everything we were going to do, are now no longer possible because let’s face the facts—there’s no way Brown 7 is ever getting out of here. There’s no escape from this hell._

_I don’t know what I’m going to do now. Do I cancel my reassignment and stay here? Because I don’t want to leave Brown 7, but I also don’t want to watch the person I love have to live in a cage and be a lab rat. I don’t want to, god forbid, have to run experiments on him! But I also can’t stand the thought of seeing the universe alone, all while knowing he’s stuck in a cage here._

_I don’t know. I just…I feel so alone.}_

{END LOG 60}

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for your patience with these updates! I'm trying to be regular, but you know, life happens.  
> Next chapter, we get to see the end of White's tale and finally get back to Orange and Bean!  
> Thanks for reading!


	4. White's End/Onwards

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Trigger warning for slight gore and suicidal-ish talk. Nothing of the sort actually happens, however.)

{LOG 61—STARDATE 26-04-2678}

_{White 4, Kyalyeria signing on._

_The replacements for Brown 7 and I arrived, and well…let’s just say the explanations we had to give on that first day were…interesting._

_We knew it was a gamble keeping Yellow 6 here as an Imposter, but the research team and Yellow 6 had agreed to keep it secret from MIRA out of fear of what they might say. We always knew they’d find out eventually, but when Brown 7 became….you know, it was clear that the team was going to have to come clean to MIRA, because otherwise there were going to be serious questions when only I showed up for assignment on the Reliant._

_MIRA HQ was pissed off at first, but eventually the commended us for “capturing the Imposter threat” and using it as an opportunity for study. Imposter policy_ is _still kill on sight, but they made an exception because we seemed to be “handling the situation.” They have recommended more security personnel for the base above us in case of an incident but told us to continue working. They also cancelled Brown 7’s reassignment and said they would search for someone else to fill the position._

_Lime 4 and Pink 2 seem nice enough, and I’ve done my best to take over the brunt of catching them up to speed on our research. But I can’t help but feel so, so sad. They just feel like a reminder of everything that’s not going to happen anymore._

_I’ve been to see Brown 7 a few times. He’s urging me to go ahead with the reassignment, and that I shouldn’t spend my life hanging around down here with him. He said he doesn’t want me to have any regrets._

_I love him, and I don’t want to leave him. But I can’t stand watching him in a cage. I asked him how he was doing, and he said he’s been better, and we both had to laugh. He doesn’t want me contacting his family or anything like that—he’d rather MIRA just send a notice informing them of his “death” (“Not that they’ll care,” he said.)_

_I hate seeing him like this. I want nothing more than to shatter the glass panels between us and run to his arms. But in my heart I know I can’t. I know he’d never hurt me, not on purpose, but it seems like when you become an Imposter you lose some of that choice._

_He still seems so…human, though. And every day I feel less and less sure that I’ve been doing the right thing. Sure, we’ve made amazing breakthroughs in our understanding of Imposters. But I’ve been watching Brown 7 with his Mini. I’ve watched how gentle he is with it, how he plays with it, how he cares about it. And I’ve seen the Mini do the exact same with him. And it makes me…I don’t know. It makes me question if the Minis really are more human than they seem. If they can think, if they can know love and return it, then is it right to be doing what we’ve done to them?_

_All of it, all the tests and experiments we’ve run, were all in the name of furthering the science. But I’ve never seen behavior like this out of a lab rat, or a chicken, or any of the other animals. Not on this scale. And it makes me feel terrible, because the more I think about it, the more it doesn’t seem like we’ve been doing the right thing. We CREATED the Mini Imposters. Did we have any right to?_

_I’m not sure. I’m just trying my best to get by until the Kargen arrives and I can get out of here._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off}_

{END LOG 61}

{LOG 62—STARDATE 01-05-2678}

_{I hate this. I hate everything. I can’t….I can’t…_

_I…I’m sorry. I can’t take much more of this. Let me…_

_I want to die. I wish I could just go to bed and never wake up. I hate this fucking planet and this fucking universe and fucking MIRA and fucking FUCK FUCK FUCK_

_I wish I could just end this. But I can’t. Because I know that’s not what Brown 7—no, Alexander would want me to do._

_It started like this. Yellow 6 is a bitch. But we know that. She’s also a dead bitch, if that’s worth anything._

_She was getting upset. Her plan to infect Brown 7 had worked, but he wasn’t paying any attention to her. And I was leaving, so she couldn’t understand why he didn’t want to be with her. He kept telling her no, no, no; but she kept pushing._

_And this fucking psycho finally decides that it’s not enough that I’m leaving. As long as I’m alive, I’ll always stand in the way of her and what she wants. And we can’t fucking have that, now can we?_

_We thought that we had Imposter-proofed the enclosures, that none of them would be able to get out. We were wrong. It seems it took very little for Yellow 6 to dismantle the ventilation system and crawl through it. And apparently our airlocks have been crap this whole time too, because all she had to do was shatter the glass with her tentacles and she was out._

_I was in my quarters, asleep. And I wake up to her over me, fully shifted into Imposter form and about to rip my fucking head off. She keeps telling me to just stay still and this will all be over quick, and that she can’t wait to “finally give her babies the food they deserve.” I throw a boot at her head and sprint out the door, more terrified than I’ve ever been. But she’s fast—really fast. It’s only seconds before she catches up with me. I’m pressed against a wall and I think I’m about to die. Silently, I tell Brown 7 I love him._

_But then Yellow 6 is screeching in pain, and I see Brown 7’s Mini attacking her, shifted into his tiny Imposter form as well. Even being terrified out of my mind I can’t help but take note of the behavior, because I KNOW Minis don’t just attack Imposters. This Mini is ripping into her and she’s biting at it and screaming for it to get off, and then all of a sudden I’m being sprayed with blood, and Yellow 6 is ripped in half at my feet, dead._

_It’s Brown 7. He—and his Mini—saved my life. It was morbid, and horrible, and awful, but I’ve never loved him more than when he held out his hand to me to help me up, still shifted in Imposter form. I fell into his arms and sobbed, and we just held each other for a short moment._

_But then we hear noise from down below us—it’s the Mini, and it’s gravely injured. Brown 7 and I hold it while it dies, and Brown 7 gives out the most anguished inhuman screech I’ve ever heard. I’m still sobbing too and regretting every bad thing I’ve said about these Minis. This one, for all I resented it, still helped save my life._

_That’s when everyone else shows up. It’s horrible. We’re sitting in a pool of blood, holding each other, cradling the body of a dead Mini above Yellow 6’s corpse._

_I don’t…I don’t remember much of what happened after that. All I know is they roughly took Brown 7 away, and someone, I don’t remember who, got me into the Medbay to clean off and check me for injuries._

_I felt numb. I still feel numb._

_They had to report the incident to MIRA. They’d didn’t have another choice. I know that. And I knew what MIRA would decide, too._

_I knew they’d say that after the display of violence, after killing someone, even if it was another Imposter, that it wasn’t safe for us to keep adult Imposters here. Especially with how easily they both got out._

_The Mini project still has prospects, but more safeguards have been added and we’re not allowed in the same room as a Mini under any circumstances anymore._

_Brown 7’s execution is two days from now. The day before we both were supposed to leave to explore the universe, in a perfect world._

_He saved my life, but somehow I feel as though I’ve still lost everything._

_I’ll…I have to go. I just need to…think._

_White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 62}

{LOG 63—STARDATE 04-05-2678}

_{This is White 4, Kyalyeria. I expect this will be my last entry as a member of Research Team Alpha on Kyalyeria 3._

_I’ve been spending every second I can with Brown 7 for the past two days. It doesn’t seem…real. We both know what’s going to happen, but despite having a layer of glass between us, we’ve been laughing and talking like we always used to._

_This morning, he asked to see me alone. The team seemed hesitant, but ultimately they caved as along as he was in the private enclosure with the most secure doors, and I stayed in the observation room on the other side._

_Not that it really did any good—Brown 7 managed to get the doors open in seconds. He was always better with the mechanical stuff than he let on. We just held each other for a moment, afraid the rest of the crew would notice how he’d sabotaged the doors and come barging in, but they never did._

_Then Brown 7 said he had something to give me. I was very unsure and asked what it was. He reached out and picked up something from behind him, and cupped it in his hands, holding it out to me. It was a tiny white Mini, small enough that it could only be from the newest batch._

_I recoiled and stumbled away, not sure what the heck he was trying to do. But Brown 7 assured me it was alright, and that the Mini wasn’t going to hurt me. He said he knew it was a big request, and I could absolutely say no if I wanted, but he wanted me to take it with me. I asked why the hell I would do that, especially if this Mini was an Imposter? It was too dangerous!_

_He said he knew and he didn’t want me to get bit, but he had a solution. He then gave me a small vial—lord knows where he got that—and said that it was full of Imposter catalyst. He’d noticed that with his Mini, if he ate at the same time, the Mini would naturally gravitate towards whatever he was eating and preferred the food that Brown 7 gave it, and would become highly affectionate afterwards._

_Brown 7 theorized that if I put a small amount of Imposter catalyst in the Mini’s food, it would simulate this effect as the Imposter catalyst from a parent Imposter was what was attracting the Minis to that food. He said he thought that if I did this, it might be enough for the Mini to already believe I was its parent and not try to bite me._

_I asked him why he wanted me to do all this. He said that all he wanted was for the Imposter virus to finally be cured, but until then, at least one of the Imposter Minis needed to be with other adults of his own kind. Brown 7 said that he’d heard rumors of an Imposter colony somewhere, and that if I could find it, maybe they could take it and one day provide a home for all the Imposter Minis. He said if it was his one dying wish, he wanted to create a world where maybe the suffering he caused could be remedied. He felt like in trying to do the right thing through research and science, he’d ended up the exact same as the rest of his family—causing suffering for those who had no choice._

_I said that I still thought Imposters were dangerous, even after all this. He said he agreed, and what was most important was finding a cure. But Imposters weren’t mindless monsters—they could think. They could feel. They could love._

_I told him I would try my best to understand, and that I would take the Mini._

_I…I honestly don’t know why I did it. Despite everything that’s happened, despite how much I love Brown 7….I’ve now seen how easily they can snap with Yellow 6. They’re still dangerous, especially when they don’t have a reliable source of fresh meat. But when I was there, with Brown 7, and he was holding that Mini out to me…I couldn’t say no._

_It was a tiny thing. Soft and squishy, it fit easily in the palm of my hand. Brown 7 said it was called MZ-729, and its color reminded him of my suit. It was easy enough to slip it and the vial of Imposter catalyst into my pack before I said goodbye to the man I loved._

_I didn’t cry. I’m very proud of that. We hugged and kissed and said goodbye as if we were going to see each other tomorrow. He went back in the enclosure and fixed the door, and I left and went to meet with the others._

_I didn’t want to watch. I’m back in my quarters right now, packing up the last of my things for tomorrow._

_It doesn’t feel real yet. Maybe it won’t feel real until I’m speeding away on a ship to Asria._

_I’ve tucked away a good amount of Mini food into my trunk to take with me. This Mini is small enough that it still sleeps most of the time, so I’ve tucked it away in a drawer for now._

_I know I shouldn’t have taken it. I should have told Brown 7 no thanks and given it back. But…I don’t know. I know it’s dangerous, and there’s no guarantee his catalyst plan will work and the Mini won’t bite someone the second it sees bare skin. But it was his last gift to me. His last wish. When he’s gone, this Mini will be all that I have left of Brown 7, and taking it was very important to him. I don’t know what he was talking about when he said there was an Imposter colony, but I owe it to him to try and find it and bring MZ-729 there so he can be with adult Imposters who can care for him._

_I don’t plan on getting bitten. Ever. I’m still figuring out how I’m going to do that, but I guess, I guess I’ll figure it out along the way, as all parents do._

_Like I said before, this will be my last entry as White 4, Kyalyeria. As soon as I leave, officially I’ll be White, Reliant. It will be strange to go by a new variation of the same name in these logs and otherwise after all this time._

_Leaving feels hard, but I know in my heart it would be harder to stay. Now I just need to smuggle this Mini out. (Sigh)_

_I…I don’t really have anything more to say. I….just want to leave._

_For the last time, this it White 4, Kyalyeria, signing off.}_

{END LOG 63}

{LOG 64—STARDATE 25-05-2678}

_{Hey, it’s White 4—I mean just White—screw it. It’s Rachel. I’m not on the new crew yet, I deserve to use my real name for once._

_I’ve been aboard the MHWC Kargen for 20? No, 21 days now. There’s still over a month and a half to go before we reach Asria._

_My arrangements on the ship haven’t been too bad. The Kargen is a HUGE ship and has a crew of around 2000. Much larger than the research vessel I’ll be on, which only has a crew of 10. But because I’m a “VIP Passenger,” which MIRA afforded me after my research work, I have a private cabin._

_That’s VERY fortunate. Because I don’t know how I’d conceal MZ-729 otherwise. I keep it in my cabin at all times—I’m not letting ANYONE see it, even though they’d probably think I was just some rich girl who’d splurged on one of these things and never suspect the truth. It’s too risky—right now at least._

_Since I’m not officially a crewmate of the Kargen, I don’t have to do tasks unless I want to. I voluntarily do a few, like sweeping the floor and whatnot occasionally just so I don’t feel like a freeloader, but most of the time I just stay in my cabin. This is one of the fancy ships that has an automated food delivery system for the first class cabins, so I don’t have to worry about going and interacting with people in the dining hall._

_That means I get to spend a lot of time with this Mini. It’s grown a lot in just these past three weeks, now completely at it’s full size at about 8 inches tall and around 16oz, depending on if it’s eaten that day or not._

_I was very, very nervous at first to try to feed it, because I knew what a single drop of that Imposter catalyst would do to me, and also I didn’t want the Mini biting me to change me or otherwise. This was day 1 on the Kargen, just hours after I’d been shown to my quarters. I wasn’t sure how this was going to work out, since the only time I’d had exposed skin around the Mini was when Brown 7 had given it to me._

_Thankfully, it’s standard policy on most MIRA ships to wear space suits at all times for safety purposes. That gave me the idea I needed—as long as I didn’t expose my skin to the Mini and found a way to contain it when I needed to be out of my suit, then that would greatly reduce the chances that it would find a way to change me. I could still be affectionate with it to assure it wouldn’t wander off, but I wouldn’t have to take that chance._

_That coupled with adding a bit of the Imposter catalyst to MZ-729’s food would, if Brown 7’s thinking was correct, would trick the Mini into thinking I was its Imposter parent. Hopefully._

_I was also nervous because I knew raw meat would be much harder to come by on the Kargen. But I hoped that if I fed it more often with both Mini food and a portion of my own rations, the Mini wouldn’t be hungry enough to go looking for other sources of food._

_The first time I mixed the Mini food and a droplet of Imposter catalyst (wearing my suit of course) and gave it to the Mini, I knew I should have never doubted Brown 7. MZ-729 ate it all up, and then to my surprise climbed on to me and started nuzzling against my helmet, squeaking in what seemed akin to happiness._

_Ever since then, I’ve thankfully had no problem with the Mini. When I need to contain it, I lock it in my trunk along with some blankets. That feels…wrong, but I have nowhere else that I can lock. Normally when I open the trunk again, the Mini has just been asleep the whole time._

_I have to admit that even after all those months of experimenting with the things, I never really got to know anything about them. And truth be told, I do occasionally find the thing cute and find myself baby talking it._

_And that’s how, to my surprise, I found out the Minis can talk. Not_ really _talk, more just single words, but it still surprised me that I didn’t know they had the capacity for speech. I found this out when I was working on my tablet and I felt something tugging on my leg. It was the Mini, of course, and it looked up at me and reached out its little arms and said “Maa,” clearly wanting me to pick it up. When I’d baby talked the Mini before, I know I had used the word ‘Mama,’ when referring to myself. It blew me away that even from those little interactions, the Mini could pick that up._

_Since then, it has consistently called me “Maa” or “MaaMa,” depending on whether it wants to attempt the two syllables or not. I’ve come to learn that this Mini has a very distinct little personality of its own. First, it will get upset and cry if I don’t cuddle it after I’ve fed it. It will also cry if I don’t play with it when it wants. So far, our “playing” has consisted mostly of me rolling a ball across the floor and the Mini biting and attacking it. Not much input from me. But roll the ball I do._

_I also need to pet and comfort it for several minutes if I ever have to leave for longer than a few minutes. I learned that lesson after I came back once I finished a task and my sheets were shredded. The Mini only seemed angry at me for a few minutes, before it was more than happy to accept pets once again. Every day I thank god there aren’t any other ways in or out of this cabin other than the door, including vents. The last thing I need is an Imposter Mini running amok in the ventilation of the ship._

_All things considered…I’m doing okay. I don’t know if I’m ready to think about what happened yet. Maybe it will take months. Maybe years. I don’t know. All I’m trying to do now is just focus on the present. I get up, I take care of the Mini, I do my tasks, and I go to bed. And then the next day I do the same thing. Repeat until Asria, I hope._

_My main goal with the Mini is to get it docile and “house trained” enough by the time we reach Asria and board the Reliant. I’m also hoping that I can find a way to safely extract more Imposter catalyst from MZ-729. I’m still working on how I’m going to do that. But once we’re aboard the Reliant, I won’t have private quarters so I can’t lock the Mini away._

_By that time it needs to be able to be around other humans without biting or attacking them. I’ve made progress, I know that, but not as much as I’m comfortable with. Until I can find Brown 7’s mystical Imposter sanctuary and leave the Mini with them, this is the best I can do._

_I’m not abandoning this Mini, even though I know that’s logically the best option. It’s a liability, I know that, but it’s all I have let of Brown 7. This was the last thing he asked of me, and I can’t just ignore that._

_Anyways. Signing off. No idea if/when I’ll update this again—there’s really no point in keeping a “crewmate log” if you’re not on a crew, is there?}_

{END LOG 64}

{LOG 65—STARDATE 10-08-2678}

_{Alright. Here we go. White, Reliant, signing on._

_It’s been awhile since my last entry. I’ve now officially boarded the MIRA Space Cruiser (MSC) Reliant, and we’ve begun our 3 year mission. I haven’t talked much to my new crew yet, but they seem nice enough. And you won’t believe this—the captain, Green, and his first mate Grey are actually THE Green and Grey from the Marwyn!! Now I know why MIRA wanted me on this ship—of course they’d want someone with Imposter research experience on the crew captained by veterans of the mission that captured the Imposters MIRA had at HQ. (I get the feeling they don’t want to talk about it, though. On day one I made reference to it, and the looks I got were enough to give me the message. I’m wondering…maybe they feel as bad having delivered those Imposters to HQ as I do having worked with the Minis? Not sure. But I have a feeling there here for some of the same reasons that I am—giving up a job you don’t feel good about to work on a small ship and see the universe. Or maybe I’m just projecting.)_

_And yes, I said ‘had’—there was a big incident where the Imposters actually went missing from MIRA HQ. They didn’t turn up dead, so it was suspected that someone let them out. It was a whole big scandal—apparently the head researcher was accused of the crime and got demoted and removed from research, but was put as the captain of some other crappy research ship called the Skeld when her innocence was revealed because MIRA is too cheap to actually fire people with experience and pay to train new ones. What a mess._

_But what concerns me is one of the other rumors flying around about this—some people are saying that it was an organized group of Imposters that pulled this jailbreak off. That might line up with what Brown 7 was saying about there being an Imposter sanctuary. I don’t like the idea of having to find these Imposters, especially if they’re capable of doing something like this, but I made a promise to Brown 7._

_Also, interestingly, there’s a rumor that MIRA was somehow the cause of the Imposters in the first place. I don’t know how much truth that holds, but…I’m inclined to believe it, just from personal experience. The Mini Imposters would have never existed if it wasn’t for our careless research. Maybe the original Imposters started because of the same reason—MIRA meddled with something dangerous it didn’t understand, and it came back to bite them._

_In other news regarding my new ship, MIRA also had to find someone real quick to take Brown 7’s place. There wasn’t anyone else available with research experience, but they did find someone who had the technical experience and was willing to take the 3 year mission. His color is Orange—I haven’t talked to him besides saying hello, and he seems to keep to himself. It’s probably for the best. I don’t know how I feel about having to run into the person who took the place of my dead fiancée too much._

_Now, regarding the Mini—_

_MZ-729 has made enormous progress over the past few months. It learned a new word (‘No’) and I’ve gotten it to the point where it acts like pretty much any other Mini most of the time. I’ve found that if I’m able to work quickly, I can open its mouth and swap its cheek, gathering some of its own Imposter catalyst to feed back to it._

_It feels like I’m drugging it somehow by putting this in his food, but I know it’s a necessity. God knows I did worse things to Minis when we were all so caught up in the research we could perform that we didn’t realize what we were doing. Because over the course of these past few months, I’ve determined that I think Minis can feel and think complexly. Maybe not to the level of an adult human, but they definitely are more intelligent that some of the other things marketed as “pets” these days. Maybe it’s the “Real Human DNA!!” I don’t know._

_The food supply I have for him is steady—it’s a mixed diet of rehydrated meat and Lilipu-Tian Corp. Mini food. I’m doing fine with it now, but I’ve ordered ahead a bulk shipment for us to pick up on our next stop, about a month from now. But as long as I mix in a drop of Imposter catalyst to each meal, MZ-729 has been docile and not done anything that is violent or might indicate it’s not completely normal._

_It’s absolutely vital that this status quo remain unchanged. There are only 10 of us out here, and when we’re in the void of space there will be no help if something happens, such as—god forbid—the Mini attack or bite someone. I feel as though there’s a big different between having a Mini Imposter with us out in space and an adult Imposter. With the Mini, as long as it is given a constant supply of food and catalyst and a little affection and attention, it can be managed. An adult Imposter would be a completely different story. Their hunger would consume them, and they would be too strong to contain. It wouldn’t matter if they tried to resist—the Imposter state heightens emotions and the instincts would soon become unbearable. The only way to ensure all crewmembers stayed alive would be to kill them._

_But I’m praying it will never come to that. Everything on the Reliant is going well so far, let’s hope it stays that way._

_White, Reliant, signing off.}_

{END LOG 65}

{LOG 66—STARDATE 16-10-2678}

_{God-FUCKING-damn it! I just! Fuck._

_Okay, I need to keep my head here. Everything is fine. Everything is GOING to be fine. I am going to find that STUPID FUCKING VIAL somewhere and then this is all going to be fine!!_

_I…let me backtrack. Calm myself down. It’s White, Reliant, and I’m not even sure why I’m doing the stupid intro anymore._

_Everything was going well. I haven’t had as much time to update because I’ve been busy out of my mind running tasks on this spaceship that seems like it was put together with scrap metal and spare screws._

_We did our first planet stopover just over a month ago, and I picked up my shipment of Mini food. All was good. But then once I opened it up and fed it to MZ-729, it starts vomiting all over the place, causing a huge mess. Turns out I got sold knockoff Mini food, and eating it makes MZ-729 sick, so he won’t eat any of it. Stupid fucking capitalism. I’m pissed. That food isn’t cheap, and it’s weeks until our next stopover where I can order food ahead. For the time being I’ve been feeding the Mini purely rehydrated meat and occasionally some of my own meal packets to fill the gaps, but I don’t know how much more I can spare._

_And on top of that, now the vial of Imposter catalyst I keep in my trunk is missing! I’ve searched everywhere, and I can’t find it. This is bad. Really bad. Without the Imposter catalyst, I can’t guarantee that MZ-729 won’t bite anyone. And the Medbay is always monitored—it will be difficult to steal some swaps and vials from there without anyone noticing._

_Fucking FUCK. I bet it has something to do with that asshole Lime and his annoying friends. They’ve been the worst part of this journey so far, and I have no idea how I’m going to last three years with them. Lime keeps saying I’m “sus” (short for ‘suspicious,’ in his world) and when I ask him why he won’t tell me. Part of me is terrified and wonders if he suspects that MZ-729 isn’t normal. If anyone would be so bold as to try to go through my things and take anything he thought was “sus,” it would be him. Or maybe I just fucking lost the vial. I don’t know. But I need to get it back as soon as possible._

_I’m just over all this. All this Imposter stuff, all this worrying. I wish I had never gotten tangled up in all this. I feel like ever since joining MIRA, I’ve been becoming more and more of a monster. All those things I did in the name of research…what more would I have done if I’d stayed? What would I be willing to do if I thought it was right?_

_I…I don’t know. I didn’t want any of this. I just wish I could go home to Grandmam and tell her she was right. Going into space is always a mistake._

_I have to go find this damn vial. Somehow. Or else._

_White, Reliant, signing off.}_

{END LOG 66}

{LOG 67—STARDATE 17-10-2678}

_{My name is Rachel Zaera, Designation White, MIRA Space Research Vessel Reliant. Formerly designation White 4, MIRA Research Base Kyalyeria.}_

_{The first thing you should know is…I am not an Imposter. I know based on what I’ve done it may look that way, and there is no excuse for the actions I have committed. But I’m recording this last log, in the case that my crewmates eject me into space, in the hopes that someone will one day read this and understand. I just want…someone to hear me out. MIRA will undoubtedly denounce me as a monster, and that’s fair—I am. But I would say I am a monster mostly because of what MIRA made me do. They are the real monsters. The Imposter threat would have never been a problem if they hadn’t done what they did._

_But I’m getting off topic. I don’t know if my crewmates will ever read this, but if they do…I’m sorry. Purple, I’m especially sorry for what I have put you through. No one deserves to have a loved one taken away from them like this. It was an accident. Blue had taken off her gloves, just for a moment, but that was enough. My Mini…MZ-729…the temptation was too much for it. It bit her. And I know what happens after that. She had hours before the change would have overtaken her, and our research has shown that an Imposter’s Hunger is strongest at that point. I told her what was happening, and she wanted to talk with the crew, but I felt they wouldn’t do what needed to be done. An adult Imposter is much more dangerous than a Mini. The crew wouldn’t have killed her, and then she would have killed us all without even knowing what she was doing._

_That doesn’t mean I feel good about what I did._

_MZ-729…it didn’t have a choice. It’s instincts demand that it find a parent figure and infect them as a defense mechanism. But as long as it’s fed, with pretty much anything-- they prefer human flesh, but will eat whatever they are given—they aren’t inherently dangerous, given you don’t tempt it with open skin. The Minis infected with this Imposter virus…they aren’t the enemies. They’re victims in all this. So all I ask, whatever happens to me, is that MZ-729 is allowed to live. It didn’t ask to be created._

_Just look after it once I’m gone. That’s all I ask._

_White, Reliant; signing off.}_

{END LOG 67}

[END LOG RECORD. RETURN TO HOME?]

Orange stared at the screen, just staring, long enough that it dimmed itself to go into sleep mode. Staring was all he felt he really could do.

 _I never knew…_ he thought, trailing off, as he struggled to absorb everything he’d just read. He’d been sitting here over an hour, just sitting and reading through White’s logs.

It all was starting to come together—why White had Bean, why she’d been so reserved this whole trip, why Bean had bitten Blue.

 _She must not have found her catalyst,_ Orange reflected darkly. _Without it, and with being exposed to Blue’s bare skin, he couldn’t resist the temptation._

He also couldn’t help but feel overwhelmingly guilty and sad. White had gone through all that, only to be ejected by her own crew for trying to save them from an Imposter. What a load of fucking luck.

 _And I voted her off,_ thought Orange. _And in the end, her death didn’t even stop one of her crewmates from becoming an Imposter. Bean still bit me._

 _I hope…I hope wherever she is she’s happy. I hope she’s with the person she loves,_ Orange wished. He wasn’t a religious sort of person, not many people were anymore, but he thought that if there was something after, White deserved to be there with Brown 7. _She did some bad things. It’s even her fault Bean is the way he is, apparently. But she did try to make it right too. She was trying to take Bean to a place where he belonged._

Silently, Orange thanked White, and Brown 7, for the tip. _An Imposter sanctuary… that’s exactly what Bean and I need right now._

But _fuck,_ here Orange had been thinking White had just been the simple quiet research type…

“ _Fuck,_ ” he muttered again, out loud this time, setting down the tablet and holding his head in his hands.

“Fuck!” said a voice behind him, joyfully.

Orange whirled around and found Bean staring at him, peeking out from the rim of his box.

“Fuck!” Bean said again.

“Oh God, Bean, fuck, wait, _fuck I shouldn’t say fuck,_ no—”

Bean wiggled himself out of the box and plopped down on to the floor, small body shaking with giggles.

“ _fuckfuckfuckfuck!! Fuck!”_ he squealed, overjoyed with his new word.

“I am officially a terrible parent,” said Orange, holding his head in his hands. “The third word he learns is a profanity.”

Orange put down the tablet and crouched down on the floor, patting his legs to signal Bean to come over. “Come on bud, over here.”

Bean waddled over quickly and scurried into Orange’s lap, eager for cuddles.

“Silly little boy, that’s not a good word for you to say,” Orange said, poking Bean’s squishy belly lightly. _White said she played with him…maybe I can try and do that to distract him from…well…cursing like a crewmate?_

“Why don’t we try a different word instead? How about….’play?’ Do you want to play with Mama, hmm?” He laid down on his back and tossed Bean up into the air to demonstrate.

“ _Play,_ okay? You like play?”

“Fuck!”

“No, say it with me Bean. PLAY.”

“Plaa?”

“Yes! Good boy! Play!” Orange affirmed, tossing Bean gently in the air again, much to Bean’s delight.

“Plaa…fuck!”

Orange sighed. “No-no, _play. P-L-A-Y._ Let’s not use that second word, alright? It’s not a good word for Bean.”

“Noo?”

“That’s right Bean. No to _fu_ ….that other word. _Play_ instead.”

“Plaay!”

“Perfect! That’s it, Bean!” Orange praised, laughing and blowing a raspberry kiss into Bean’s soft belly. “Playtime for Bean!”

Bean erupted with squeals and rolled around as Orange tickled him.

“Maa plaay!”

“Yes, Bean, that’s right. You’ve got it,” Orange said proudly. “You learn so quickly!”

Orange consciously focused on slipping partially into his Imposter form so that he could give Bean kisses with his long tongue, which he knew the Mini liked, in order to try his best to reinforce the positive behavior. _That’s what you’re supposed to do with babies, right? Reinforce good behavior? I don’t know. I need to read White’s logs again. There was so much in there I need to know if I’m going to learn how to best take care of a Mini Imposter._

He carefully curled his tongue around Bean and flicked the tip against Bean’s cheek, causing the Mini to shift his form as well and return the gesture.

“Maama,” he said, in between little hisses of satisfaction.

“I love you Bean,” replied Orange. “Good boy.”

He stood up and reached into the supply crate, and carefully rolled some spare bits of tin foil into a small ball. _White mentioned that he liked playing with balls in the logs. I wish I could get my hands on something real, but I don’t have anything else right now,_ Orange thought.

He crouched down and waved the shiny object in front of Bean’s face, who watched with interest.

“Here bud. This is something you can play with. It’s a ball, ok? I know you’ve played with one of these before. Here, I’ll roll it for you. Like this,” Orange demonstrated, dropping the ball and allowing it to roll several feet across the dropship floor. He scooted over and nudged it back towards the Mini, who pounced on it with a tiny growl and wrapped his body around it, kicking with his tiny feet.

 _I really need to get him some real toys,_ Orange remarked sadly. He knew that Bean had to be bored stuck in this space shuttle with very little to stimulate his mind. They _both_ were.

_I wonder if we’ll ever actually get off this ship and go somewhere that getting toys is even possible. I don’t know… I just hope I can do right by Bean. I know it’s probably just…’Imposter Brain’ talking, but I do care about him. I’d do anything for him. It seems we both got thrown into this mess without our consent, and all we can do it deal with it._

Orange sighed and was about to go back and re-read the tablet logs, eager to review what White had to say about Minis and Imposters when a beep from the radar shocked him out of his trance.

_What was that?_

He ran over and pulled up the radar screen, which began to beep more rapidly.

 _Holy shit, speak of the devil,_ thought Orange, heart beating rapidly. _Is this for real?_

But there was no mistaking the signal on the radar. Only twelve clicks away, there was a planet ahead, well within reach of the dropship’s rapidly draining fuel supply. And the radar confirmed it with 99% accuracy.

“We can make it,” whispered Orange. “We’re not going to die out here.”

_But what planet was it?_

Orange focused in on the scanner, hoping that the MIRA database on board could identify it. To his surprise, it only took a couple seconds.

_[ALERT. PLANET IDENTIFIED. DESIGNATION: CLASS C PLANETOID, LIFE RESOURCES IDENTIFIED. GEOTHERMAL ACTIVITY DETECTED.]_

“Okay, okay, that’s good,” muttered Orange, processing the information. “That could work.”

But then the radar dinged again and continued.

_[ALERT. MIRA PLANET BASE IDENTIFIED. DESIGNATION: POLUS OUTPOST]_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there we have the end of White. Buuut you already knew what was going to happen to her. Sorry.  
> Next, we make it to Polus. Which might be less of a massacre sight than you're expecting if you've read the first fic in this series. You can speculate about what that means. Regardless, I'm really excited for you all to meet Ochre *eyes*
> 
> I didn't specify what actually ever happened to White's vial of catalyst, so that's up to your interpretation. Did she actually just lose it? Did it roll into a vent? Was Lime being the bastard we all know him to be and take the vial, to hold against White later? Did one of the other Reliant crewmates find it? Did one of them find it after Orange and Bean left and drink it, thinking it was a cool micro-shot of something awesome? Are the remaining crew of the Reliant being eaten and/or turned into Imposters as we speak? It's really up to you.
> 
> Update: I am still working on this fic, don’t worry! I’m just fairly busy until around mid-November, but hopefully after that point I can get back to working on this story. Thanks for you patience!


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